Heresies of Ala Alba
by GrandHaberdasher
Summary: The premise of Learned Dissertations of Ala Alba, applied to other fanfictions, mostly associated with Ala Iridia. Chapters will be incomprehensible if you haven't read the fic being discussed. Opinions expressed are not those of the author.
1. Decadence and Folly

The fanfiction being referenced is _Decadent Habits_, by Darkenning. It's actually a lot better than the following would have you believe.

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><p><strong><em>Decadence and Folly<em>**

_How the Darkenning sect's unique interpretations of certain deities reveals the magnitude of their depravity_

The infamous Darkenning sect, more commonly known by their epithet "the Decadents," was the great shame of the Akamatsu. They ignored the useful symbolism of the pantheon in favor of wild and lurid tales of wanton debauchery between the inexplicably related Ala Albans, which many used to justify incestuous relationships. It is generally agreed that this bizarre heresy had its roots in cross-pollination with another pantheon or pantheons. Classical mythology, Egyptian mythology, and the incest between Arthur and Morgase are all commonly cited influences. Regardless of the source, the ideas were swiftly and enthusiastically adopted by the lowest sort of people. Nevertheless, a true scholar may produce a silk purse even from such a collection of sows' ears as the Decadents.

Evangeline A. K. McDowell, vampire and slaver, is widely understood as a symbol of dangerous appetites, historical barbarism, and the abuses of power (such as the power a lustful parent might have over an innocent child). It seems even the Decadents may have on occasion grasped the symbolism of their deities, as they reduce the anthropomorphized warning against their most beloved forms of depravity into the infantilized "Kitty." Where Evangeline was meant to disturb worshipers by combining the appearance of a child with a lustful demeanor, Kitty is a child in truth without losing her carnal purview. That the Decadents would thus render harmless the great bogeyman of Ala Alba, and then go so far to ohteepee her to Negi, shows a contemptuous disregard of the consequences of their actions that would be shocking among any less depraved sect.

While the Decadents accomplished the impressive feat of making the tales of Evangeline yet more disquieting, they have made those of Haruna more wholesome. Give Haruna's role as a patron of chaos and certain forms of erotica, one would expect the Decadents to embrace her with open arms. Instead, they seem to have subscribed to Hero Theory, and judged the supposedly historical Haruna as overly prudish, rather than understanding her as a representation of their own impulses. Why the more open Haruna was held to this "historical" standard where her fellows were freely warped is one of history's great mysteries. How may the well-adjusted fathom the minds of degenerates?

Another relatively unscathed figure in Decadent mythology is Makie. Her retention of her innocence has been cited by certain scholars as evidence that even the Decadents had depths to which they would not descend. These scholars are naïve. Was not Chachamaru, retaining her aspect as the gentle protector of cats, sucked into the incestuous maelstrom? One must not overlook the fact that, in addition to being an innocent, Makie was also described as a fool. Stories of her being crushed by her misfortunes and inadequacies were popular among children at the time. While we may see Makie's innocence as positive, the Decadents would have viewed it as worthy of scorn, a fitting fate for a failure.

There is one final abnormality worthy of note among the Decadents' legends. They were the only known sect to believe in an ohteepee between Satsuki and Zazie. A connection drawn between welcome and peace on the one hand and enigma and shadow on the other would seem a matter of great interest. However, given the nature of the Decadents, it is far more likely that some priest or other merely found the coupling of those particular deities erotic, with no thought given to deeper meanings. The mind reels and the bile rises at the thought of such a mindset.

Now the Darkenning sect is as fully understood as it need be. A thorough investigation of their theology shows that the common contempt in which they were held was, if anything, insufficient. The Decadents' theology and practices were unrelentingly vile, and they should be ever remembered as a warning of how low humanity may sink if its vices are not guarded against.


	2. Those who Hunt Witches

Guest written by NightmareSyndrom, about Maga Puella Lamiarum Venator Nodoka, by NightmareSyndrom. Hey, wait a tick...

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><p><strong><em>Those who Hunt Witches<em>**

Last year, remains of another sect of the Alban was discovered deep within the mountains. Unfortunately, only their earliest tales have been uncovered as of now. These 'Venators' seem to have held the belief that one of the Alban goddesses had acquired her power from a completely different pantheon. Perhaps they where converts from said pantheon or wished to make it more easily to convert from it.

The Venators claimed that Nodoka sold her soul for power, in hopes that the god Negi would favor her if she was powerful enough for him to be able to rely on her. Instead of the usual librarian motif that almost every other sect depicts, the Venators literally made her a knight in shining armor. On several occasions they point out how exceptional she is at using her powers compared to the others in the foreign pantheon.

An unusual anomaly in their stories is the depiction of the usually mysterious Zazie. The Venators hint that she has some ties to the demons Nodoka fought, yet she seemed to be aiding Nodoka in anyway she can off the battlefield.

Despite what has been stated, the world the Venators speak of is surprisingly dark. Nodoka was nearly killed by every demon she faced. Haruna, who was often depicted as a being of Chaos, was easily turned against her fellow goddesses by demonic influence and is genuinely horrified by her own actions. Asuna was accused of treason and forcibly raped by the other Alban goddesses for a crime she did not commit.

Unfortunately, as stated previously, only the earliest tales of the Venators have been uncovered. It is currently unknown if their beliefs had a light at the end of the tunnel or if their world descended even further into despair.


	3. Moral Lessons Taught by the Descendents

Written about _Descendants of Negi: An Elseworld of 2814… Maybe…_, by Shadow Crystal Mage. I'm sure it's going to get updated. Eventually.

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><p><strong><em>Moral Lessons Taught by the Descendents of Negi<em>**

Recently, the ruins of a temple complex devoted to awaiting the children of the Alban chief god Negi Springfield upon all his myriad lovers have been discovered on a small collection of islands. Sadly, the record is incomplete. Apparently, infighting among the various factions eventually escalated to the point that they were hiring seaborne mercenaries to attack each other, destroying valuable religious artifacts. Consequently, we know nothing about many of the the purported descendents, and next to nothing about others. In other cases, the evidence is confused, such as when the descendents appear to be transplants from other pantheons, or the odd case of the children of Fuka and Fumika, who seem to be virtually identical and mutually antagonistic. Nevertheless, we can develop a clear understanding of some few children of Negi, and the moral lessons about dealing with children that they represent.

''Yuuko Aisaka-Springfield'', the daughter of Sayo, does not appear on the surface to be an inspiring figure. She possesses the most negative traits of her parents and occupies a twilight position between life and death. She is, in short, a figure of great weakness. Despite this, she manages to have adventures on an equal footing with her half-sibling. Her story teaches that we should accept children's weaknesses and help them to find their strengths.

''Ariadne Ayase-Springfield'', the daughter of Yue, inherits the magical and intellectual prowess possessed by both sides of her family. Unfortunately, this does not bring her happiness. She is forever overshadowed by both her divine parents, and hides her aspirations of becoming an author. Her story teaches that we must not assume that the path of the parents is not necessarily the right path for the children.

''Arika Sakurazaki'', the daughter of Setsuna, and ''Amaterasu Aoyama'', the daughter of Tsukuyomi, were worshiped together. The descriptions of Arika suggest that members of the infamous Darkenning sect influenced her legends. They must also have been very lucky or very skilled in the eventual warfare, or else they would surely have been ganged up on, wiped out, and their idols destroyed with enthusiasm. Nevertheless, the tales of Amaterasu actually contain some redeeming value. Tsukuyomi was one of the most depraved deities of the Alban cosmology, yet her daughter was kind, hopeful, and associated with the life-giving sun. Her story, appropriately given the character of the devout who spread tales of her, teaches that wicked or otherwise flawed parents may bring forth good children.

''Mido Nagase'', the daughter of Kaede, is too sickly to draw on the full power of her heritage. She manages to compensate by using analytical skills learned from both parents. Her story teaches that the most important thing children can do to succeed is to develop their minds.

''Nanami'' and ''Makoto Hasegawa'', the children of Chisame, were raised ignorant of their divine heritage, and many other mystic aspects of the world, in order to keep them safe and happy. Despite this, Nanami became an expert on all things mystic, and Makoto attempted to perform deific quests even while he believed he was no more than mortal. Their stories teach that we cannot be sure of preventing children from making the same mistakes we made.

''Seraphine Ataraxia Vitalia Mc Dowell-Springfield'', the daughter of Evangeline, is unsurprisingly a tragic figure. Her mother died when she was ten, and from then on she quested after an artifact that would restore Evangeline's life at the cost of her own. Her story teaches that sacrificing ourselves to make our children happy will do no good if they weep for their loved ones suffering.


	4. The Amber Sect

Written by Overmaster, about _Thirty One Clown Princesses in Amber_, by Overmaster. Yep, this is another writer riffing on his own work.

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><p><em><strong>Brief Anotations on the Doctrines of the Amber Sect, and Their Relationship to Contemporary Studies on Ala Alba<strong>_

The myths of the American 'Bat-Man', often associated or assimilated into those of the collection of deities known as the Justice League or Society, seem to have their roots around seven centuries before the main Ala Alba myths started spreading. Curiously, much more information about those early myths has been preserved to the date compared to Ala Alba's, probably because they were more popular and better disseminated stories. However, a wide variety of those tales are mutually contradictory, particularly in matters like the nature itself of their protagonist and his enemies.

It has been said the 'Bat-Man' was a normal human with enough skills and courage to have adventures alongside the gods themselves, making them treat him like an equal thanks to his crafty mind and prodigious artifacts (perhaps, in a way, Chao Lingshen was inspired by his epics to build similar boasts around herself). In short, a modern Prometheus. A few myths, however, state the Bat-Man was an actual supernatural creature of the night himself, a nocturnal predator often associated with the tales of the vampires. No matter the instance, however, it is widely agreed the Bat-Man preyed on crime (the scale of his exploits varies wildly between accounts, from mere urban level to global adventures), and his enemies were apparently legion, often identified with popular demons like the Freeze-Man (also known as Captain Cold, although some state this was a different demon) and the Cat-Woman.

Chief amongst those adversaries was the Joker, also known in some stories as The Laughing Man. Apparently, according to documents of those remote ages collected and now found in the Temple of Amber at Bludhaven, the Joker was indeed based on a real life criminal and terrorist, although modern studies make likely to believe he only had a single city wide mass rampage which left a strong impression in the Gotham populace. Postliminary appearances of the boogeyman are now attributed to copycats and followers of his anarchist teachings, which apparently became rather common for centuries.

How does this relate to the tales of Negi Springfield? According to the Amber Sect, Negi Springfield's students, or at least a majority of them, were in fact followers of the Joker in their formative years. These teachings have been branded blasphemy and anathema by most Ala Alba cults, but the heretics do raise a valid point at establishing the long age of Evangeline, and her well accepted past as a hardened, unrepentant criminal. It is not unlikely to think she and the Joker could have dealt with each other at some point, being the two most feared criminals of the time, although the possibility of the timeframes of Ala Alba and the original Joker coinciding seems too remote to be pondered seriously.

While most Ala Alba enthusiasts deride the theories of the Amber Sect arguing only the 'Good' moral stances of Ala Alba, we are probably better off utilizing the timeline discrepancies to discard those ideas. After all, many of Ala Alba and Ala Rubra were known and enthusiastic spreaders of chaos, which was the Joker's most generally accepted cause. It is not completely impossible Saotome or the carnivalesque makeup-wearing Rainyday studied and followed the twisted teachings of the Joker to some degree.

The Amber Sect myths try to incorporate Ala Alba's widely known quirks into the Joker myths with lesser or bigger fortune. Akashi's status as a firearms user with an Electra complex is kept, although her defining traits are exaggerated to the point of complete sociopathy. Chachamaru's gentle personality is explained as her being the moral center and calming factor of her criminal 'family', her presence there being justified by her loyalty to her master Evangeline. Makie's innocence becomes the sick absent-mindedness of a child raised in the middle of horrors, gleefully maiming and killing without exact knowledge about the moral wrongness of her actions.

Curiously, not only is Negi himself re-interpreted here as the Bat-Man's young associate involved in a love hate relationship with his adversaries, eventually swaying them to his side, but the normally blood thirsty and cruel Tsukuyomi is completely reinvented as her polar opposite, a strict, fanatical enforcer of order and enemy of the now evil Ala Alba. The extreme implausibility of such statements makes them barely useful for any serious studies.

Still, considering how Ala Alba spent long periods of time as outlaws in the run from other deities, their occasional adhesion to some of the Joker's ideals against the establishment cannot be fully discarded yet.


End file.
